Jan. 8, 2011

Box Score |   

Cullowhee, N.C. - Trey Sumler posted his fifth-straight double-digit scoring outing, finishing with a career-high 24 points including 4-of-6 from beyond the 3-point arc to lead a trio of Catamounts in double figures as Western Carolina upended Davidson, 81-73, Saturday afternoon in Southern Conference action in the Ramsey Center.

Sumler, who posted his second-consecutive, 20-point scoring performance, helped WCU halt a seven-game slide in games against the Wildcats in Cullowhee. The Catamounts also evened their SoCon record on the year at 2-2, improving to 6-10 on the season while Davidson dropped to 7-8 overall, 1-3 in league games.

Davidson's Jake Cohen sank a jumper to pull the Wildcats to within five points, 62-57, with seven minutes remaining in regulation. However, that was as close as the visitors would get as Western Carolina managed its lead, pulling ahead by a dozen on a slam dunk by Harouna Mutombo with just over a minute left in the game.

WCU connected on six of eight free throws inside the closing moments to seal the win, its second-straight on the year and fifth-consecutive at home dating back to last season.

Senior Mike Williams tallied 13 points and four assists off the bench for WCU, while Harouna Mutombo also scored 13 in the winning effort for the Catamounts. Freshman Tawaski King and Preston Ross both finished with eight points and combined for nine boards, six by Ross.

Western Carolina broke an early 3-3 tie with 10-straight points including five by Mutombo to race out to a 13-3 lead. The Wildcats were able to close to within four, 21-17, before the Catamounts mounted a 14-to-3 run to take a game-high lead of 15, 35-20, two and a half minutes before the break.

WCU led by 11 at intermission, 38-27.

Davidson outscored the Catamounts, 8-2, out of the halftime locker room to pull back within five points, 40-35, three minutes into the final stanza. The Wildcats would trim WCU's edge to five on four separate occasions, including the final time on Cohen's jumper with seven minutes left in the contest.

Davidson put three in double figures led by J.P. Kuhlman and Nik Cochran with 13 points apiece while De'Mon Brooks posted a double-double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. v The Catamounts shot 50-percent from the floor (26-of-52) including 6-of-15 (40%) from beyond the arc while limiting Davidson to 41-percent shooting and seven made 3-pointers.

Western Carolina returns to action on Thursday, Jan. 13 as it hosts North Division foe, Elon, in SoCon play. Tip-off against the Phoenix at the Ramsey Center is scheduled for 7:00 pm.

Post-Game Notes:
- Western Carolina halted a seven-game winless drought against Davidson, scoring its first home victory in the series since Feb. 12, 2000;

- Redshirt freshman Trey Sumler posted his fifth-straight, double-digit scoring outing with a career-high 24 points ... It was the second-consecutive game Sumler had scored 20-or-more points in a WCU win;

- Western Carolina remained perfect at home on the season at 3-0 with the win over Davidson and have now won five-straight games inside the Ramsey Center ... All told, the Catamounts have won 31 of their last 36 home games including 19 of the last 22 SoCon games in Cullowhee;

- The Catamounts have scored 81 points in back-to-back games, both wins in SoCon play to even their seasonal record at 2-2 in league play ... the 81 points are the most for WCU against NCAA Division I foes this season.